A Strange and Foreign Land

They came in the summer talking of new lives
Packed us in trucks and took us all away
We drove onwards and we sailed northwards
Till we reached a town on a bay
Now we go out late to catch the low tide
Then we wade out far, as far as we can
Catching cockles on the sand flats
Of this strange and foreign land

Sometimes it's quiet at the seafront
But I need to find some work or we don't eat
Cause there's no job too small for me now
When there's so many back home I need to keep
They said you've got such a big family
I said I do sir and I trust I will to the end
But it gets cold here by Christmas
In a strange and foreign land

This waters cold, colder than the journey
On the long road we took to bring us here
From Fujian, Moscow, Berlin and Dover
To a bed in a house in Lancashire
But It's getting dark and I need to find the shoreline
My voice is weak and I can't shout the man
I can't swim and I can't get any help here
In this strange and foreign land

When I look back what do I remember
Not the wind or the waters covering me
Not the cries of my poor brothers
As they surrendered to the sea
I still recall my struggle
To reach the safety of the sand
How could I ever
feel so grateful
To this strange and foreign land
How could I ever
Feel so grateful
To this strange and foreign land